Hey everyone, here's The Sailor's Tale

The Sailor/Shipman
General Prologue (line 390 to line 412)
• Rode a carthorse
• Wore a gown of thick rough cloth that fell to his knees
• Wore a dagger around his neck and under his arm
• Had a golden brown tan from the sun
• When on his ship, he would steal wine from the merchant while he slept
• Did not have a conscience
• Was a very experienced sailor; knew all of the harbors
Sailor’s Prologue
• Host decides that the priest will preach to everyone and tell a tale
• The sailor interrupts the conversation between the host and the priest, and says that HE will tell the next tale
• He also makes it clear that the tale will not be about philosophy, physics or law
• The tale will be about Latin
Sailor’s Tale
• About a rich merchant from Saint Denys who had a very beautiful wife
• They lived in a very nice house and often had guests
• His wife loved to go to social events and wear fine clothing
• All of this was very expensive for the merchant and he ended up losing his money because of it
• One of the merchant’s guests was a very handsome, 30-year old monk named Dan John
• Dan John told the merchant that they were cousins
• The two men became very close, and the merchant thought of the monk as a brother
• Whenever he was at the merchant’s house, Dan John was always very generous and kind to the servants
• When the merchant had to make a trip to Bruges, he insisted that Dan John stop by and spend some time with him and his wife
• He brought wine and food for the group to enjoy together
• On the monk’s third day with the merchant, the merchant decided to spend time going over his finances and didn’t want anyone to disturb him
• At the same time, Dan John rose and wandered into the garden where he ran into the merchant’s wife
• Noticing the paleness of the woman’s face, Dan John asked her what was wrong
• The wife promised to tell the monk her problems as long as he kept it a secret
• The woman told him that she is unhappy with her husband, but felt bad for speaking so badly of the monks cousin
• Dan John then told her that the two men really weren’t related at all
• The merchant’s wife continued and said that there were six things that every woman desired a husband to be: hardy, wise, rich and therewith free, obedient to the wife and fresh in bed
• The wife then said she needed to borrow 100 francs from him. She was adamant about paying him back at some point and/or give him whatever pleasure or service he desired
• She said that if she didn’t pay him back, then God take vengeance on her
• The monk said he would give her the money when her husband left on his trip to Bruges and told her not to worry
• Then he hugged her and kissed her
• The wife then went to find her husband to have supper with and found him still looking over his finances, not eating or doing anything else
• She asked him how long he would stay there and he said that out of 12 merchants, 2 may survive financially. Therefore, he had to pay attention and take special care of his business
• He then said that merchants must always live in dread and fear in case of chances and mishaps that could affect their business
• The merchant then told his wife that he was leaving in the morning for his trip and she had enough food, clothing, etc. to last his absence
• The group had dinner and the monk pulls the merchant aside and tells him to have a safe, healthful journey
• Dan John then asked the merchant to lend him 100 francs to buy cattle and to keep the loan a secret
• The merchant nobly replied that the merchant’s gold was the monk’s as well and he told him to take what he like or need
• He told Dan John to pay it back when he was able to and gave him the money
• They walked around drinking and talking, and then the monk left for the abbey
• The merchant went on his journey the next day, but did not gamble or dance at all
• On the Sunday after the merchant left, Dan John traveled back to the merchant’s home with the 100 francs
• He and the merchant’s wife agreed that he would give her the 100 francs if she would spend the night in bed with him
• The next day, the monk returned to the abbey
• When all of the merchant’s business was done, he returned to his wife in Saint Denys
• He then visits the monk to see how he is doing and to tell him that he needs his 100 francs back to invest in his business
The monk then tells the merchant that he already gave the money back to his wife. The merchant returns home and asks his wife about it. She tells him that she spent the money on clothes and to repay him, she will do whatever he wants in bed. He forgives her and tells her not to do it again.

That's the Sailor's/Shipman's Tale
-Sarah